Follow Me @thebookwormtraveler

@thebookwormtraveler

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Wakaf Bharu-Kuala Lumpur Night Train

The entire country of Malaysia was celebrating Hari Raya (End of Ramadan) when we decided to travel back to KL. Meaning, it was a nationwide holiday. Most transportation companies were inoperative and flights were fully booked. We were left with no other option but to take the train. It was the only working mode of transpo that time.

Wakaf Bharu Station platform

Well, what can I say. The train was very late. It was almost 8:00 PM when we it arrived. Uncle waited with us at the platform. He was so sweet. He even bought us each, bottles of mineral water that we can take for the long train ride. He also made sure we're getting the great beds (well it's a sleeper train, so it wasn't seats hehe) and that we are okay after boarding.

a stray kitten we fed at the station

Uncle was one of those people who made this backpacking trip memorable for me. I was treated like his own daughter. I never felt like I was away from home because I was treated like a family member. Another act of kindness from a total stranger I would never forget. Xie xie, Uncle! :)

got used to the Malay words :)

Moon and I got beds opposite to each other. The train was a little old but still comfortable enough. The train wasn't full. Only the lower decks were mostly occupied. Who travels during Hari Raya anyway? Most of them were in their hometowns celebrating with their families.

Moon in her deck :)

The train left at around 7:50 PM. It was getting dark. I felt a little bit melancholic as the train began to move at the same time the sky was darkening. Going back to KL means, my journey is about to end soon.

getting emo ;)

The bed exactly fits my height and I'm a "short" person. So I think, it's a little more difficult for Westerners to fit in there. The space was fine, I could still roll around my bed. :) We just put our backpacks at end of the bed. The beddings were decently clean, I guess. It didn't smell or anything. Although I was a bit wary because I saw some baby roaches crawling on the floor. Yaiiks.

me in my train bed

We can't sleep at first because there was a bunch of noisy and hyperactive kids running around. They were even opening up other people's curtains and climbing up the vacant beds on the upper decks. Geez, those kids. Since I couldn't sleep, I just wrote my travel notes and recounted everything I have to remember about the trip. I forgot my travel journal, so I just wrote it at the back of my used flight itineraries haha.

my train ticket

Still couldn't sleep after that, so I just read a book. I tried to continue that Fifty Shades book that was pending for so long. As of writing, I still hadn't finished it. Maybe I really don't like it. I just don't dig it. To my friends who recommended it, sorry! It made me fell asleep! Your Christian Grey bores me. ;)

Malaysia Day 10

We had a pleasant sleep that night. I woke up at around 7:00 AM thinking that we may be close to KL. The sun was out and the skies were already bright. They said it'll be a 12-hour trip. But when I looked outside, it didn't look like where in KL yet. There were still trees and vegetation. Looked like the train wasn't going too fast.

are we there yet?

It was not like we could do anything, so we just patiently waited until we reached Kuala Lumpur. Well, guess what? The 12-hour train ride became 16 hours! We arrived in KL Sentral at around 12:00 noon. That was the longest ride of my life to date!

good morning Malaysia!

Even though we got some sleep overnight, we still felt exhausted after the trip. Moon and I parted ways in KL Sentral. We agreed to rest for the afternoon and just meet later that night in KLCC just to hang out and have dinner.

That was one unforgettable ride. It was almost three times longer than that Thailand-Cambodia border train ride where I got bored as hell. Good thing this one was a night train! It was an overwhelming first experience. Yeah, it was my first sleeper train ride. I'm starting to consider myself as a seasoned traveler. ;)